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MI5 to hold inquiry in the wake of Manchester bombing

This article is more than 12 months old

LONDON Britain's MI5 is to hold an inquiry into how it dealt with public warnings that the Manchester suicide bomber Salman Abedi posed a potential threat, the BBC reported yesterday.

MI5 was alerted to Abedi's extremist views at least three times, the BBC said.

It is highly unusual for British authorities to make public that the security service is conducting an internal investigation into possible lapses.

Interior Minister Amber Rudd told Sky News that this was a "right first step" for MI5 to take in the wake of the bombing that killed 22 people at a pop concert by US singer Ariana Grande.

The security service will examine assumptions that were made about Abedi before the attack, and has launched a "post-incident investigation" into how the bomber was overlooked, the BBC said.

A separate report is also being prepared for ministers and those who oversee the work of the service, it added.

A source told Reuters last week that Abedi was one of "a larger pool of former subjects of interest" whose risk remained subject to review by MI5.

NEW SUSPECT

British police said they had arrested a new suspect yesterday over the Manchester bombings, bringing to 14 the number of people they have in custody over the attack.

Authorities detained a 23-year-old in the southern coastal town of Shoreham-by-Sea, more than 400km from Manchester.

In addition, police raided a property in a southern Manchester suburb as they step up their investigation into last week's bombing.

The attack was carried out by British-born extremist Abedi.

Several of the victims were children, the youngest being just eight.- WIRE SERVICES

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